Now, the city of Portland is bracing for violence on its streets as Proud Boys along with the right-wing group Patriot Prayer and other anti-government groups, will put on the “Freedom March” in that city Saturday, Aug. 4, an event which has been likened by many to the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville last year.

Saturday’s march is being held in support of Joey Gibson, founder of Patriot Prayer, many of whose members come to rallies armed with guns. Gibson is seeking a U.S. senate seat in Washington State.

The Proud Boys don Fred Perry polo shirts and red “Make America Great Again” hats and brand themselves as “Western Chauvinists” who are unapologetic about being white and male. The group was started by Gavin McInnes, co-founder of VICE Media, in 2016.

On his Twitter account, McInnes says he is pro “life, West, gun, gay, Israel, Trump, law enforcement and First Amendment,” and that he is anti “Nazi, Antifa, Alt-Right and Feminist.” The group also claims to have a number of members who are non-white.

However, experts on hate and extremism who follow the group and study its activities, say they are most definitely a part of the alt-right.

“I’d say they are more Alt-Light,” said Brian Levin, director for the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at Calstate, San Bernardino. “They have this muddled message. They use all these code words for white supremacy like ‘western chauvinism.’ But when they start to feel the heat, they distance themselves. They are like a duck that wants to be a platypus.”

SoCal rallies

Verbal threats, violence and a display of machismo are all ingrained in the Proud Boys’ ethos, said Carla Hill, an investigative researcher with the Anti-Defamation League. They like to incite violence and provoke people with their MAGA hats, especially the Antifa, she said.

“They are absolutely willing to take their ideology to their street,” Hill said, adding that the Proud Boys in particular seems to be an interesting cross between a street gang and a hate group.

All of those marches and rallies featured the group the Proud Boys consider their arch-nemesis: Antifa or anti-fascist groups.

On its site, the Proud Boys also say they are affiliated with the violent organization, Fraternal Order of the Alt Knights (FOAK), which operates like a “fight club.” The Proud Boys refer to them as their “military arm.”

The group, which is believed to exist in about a dozen states with at least 100 members in each state, doesn’t operate in a vacuum. Hill says McInnes is known for using provocative language on social media.

“His prerogative nature is what pushes this group and these young men who follow him,” she said.

Street gang?

Hill finds the group’s initiation process interesting and similar to that of a street gang. The first step as a recruit, she said, is to recite an oath declaring that they are unapologetic Western chauvinists.

The second level involves other group members punching the recruit. To get to the third level, the recruit must get a Proud Boy tattoo and the final level is reserved for those who have had a violent confrontation with the Antifa or on another issue related to their cause.

The Proud Boys are an example of “veiled white supremacy,” which seems to be in vogue with many right wing groups today, said Peter Simi, associate professor of sociology at Chapman University who has extensively researched white power groups.

“The Proud Boys deliberately cultivate a street image and place a strong emphasis on physicality, but maintain a clean-cut image,” he said.

Levin said the Proud Boys’ bigoted stereotyping has an air of nuance that’s missing from Klansmen.

“They are certainly part of a growing and active set of a leaderless movement in an Alt-Right, Alt-Light movement,” he said.

Deepa Bharath covers religion for The Orange County Register and the Southern California Newspaper Group. Her work is focused on how religion, race and ethnicity shape our understanding of what it is to be American and how religion in particular helps influence public policies, laws and a region's culture. Deepa also writes about race, cultures and social justice issues. She has covered a number of other beats ranging from city government to breaking news for the Register since May 2006. She has received fellowships from the International Women's Media Foundation and the International Center for Journalists to report stories about reconciliation, counter-extremism and peace-building efforts around the world. When she is not working, she loves listening to Indian classical music and traveling with her husband and son.